Western Force recruit Ben Donaldson has explained getting out of his comfort zone was a big reason behind his switch to Perth, having signed on until 2025.
Sydney-born-and-raised Donaldson has moved out of the family home in Sydney’s east for the first time since switching to Perth where he’s living with Force teammates Jeremy Williams and Will Harris.
The 24-year-old Wallabies fly-half arrived in Perth in December following his World Cup commitments and has already taken a liking to local activities like surfing at Trigg Beach and golf at Wembley Golf Course.
The Randwick junior had spent five years with the Waratahs, but was enticed west by ex-NSW assistant coach Simon Cron, with the attraction of playing alongside former teammates like Williams and Harris, but also a completely new challenge.
“Big move. I’ve been in Sydney my whole life,” Donaldson told Force TV. “I’ve lived at home my whole life, bit of a family man as well, so it was a big move.
“I knew it was going to be a challenge. It was the right time for me. I had a few good chats with Crono. I’d known him a little bit from the past. Everyone knows what type of coach he is. He’s an unreal coach.
“He’s got a good coaching group here. He’s got a good squad. I thought it was a good challenge to move out of home, trying something new, new group of boys, new coaches.
“You saw the way the Force played last year, they were moving in the right direction. It’s a new challenge for me. I’m excited to put my best foot forward and hopefully start. Hopefully have a great season with the boys.”
Williams and Harris have taken Donaldson under their wings on domestic life, cooking together albeit with a unique twist on who handles cleaning duties each night.
“They’ve both lived out of home before, so they’re showing me the ropes a bit,” the Waverley College graduate said. “I’m really enjoying it, it’s something different, a new experience and it’s fun with the boys.
“At the moment, we’re all cooking together. We play cards to see who cleans up. At the moment, we all cook together, I reckon I’ve got the cake so far. I made a nice little beef stir fry. It was unreal.
“I think it was probably the right time to get out of home, my dad was trying to get out. I’ve been enjoying it. Bit more responsibility on yourself. I’m growing as a person. You come here to grow as a rugby player but I feel like I’m growing as a person as well.”
Donaldson’s arrival in WA comes after debuting for Australia in November 2022, going on to make four starts at last year’s World Cup, including two at full-back and two at fly-half.
The Wallabies may have failed to progress beyond the pool stage but Donaldson’s performances were impressive, even earning Player of the Match honours in the 35-15 win over Georgia.
“It was obviously a disappointing tournament as a whole,” he said. “Personally, I was pretty happy with my performances, as happy as you can be when you’re winning and losing.
“I took so many learnings and experiences out of it, as you would, it’s a World Cup. It’s an awesome experience, it was a massive buzz, you’ve got your family there, you’ve got half the world watching.
“Even though we didn’t make it out of the pool stages, you take a lot of learnings from that as a young player, especially when you’re playing 10.
“Plenty of learnings to bring back to the force. I loved the experience and it was a competition I’ll probably remember forever.”
Donaldson’s immediate goals for the 2024 Super Rugby Pacific season are locking himself into the Force starting line-up with competition for spots including Max Burey, Reesjan Pasitoa and Campbell Parata.
“I just want to be the starting number 10 here at the Force,” he said. “Obviously there’s a lot of great competition with Bizza (Burey), Reesjan, Campbell, there’s a lot of boys here who are pushing for a spot which is awesome.
“I know that’s not an easy spot to get. That’s the first main goal, to get that starting spot.”
Become a Force member today. The Force open their 2024 Super Rugby Pacific season on Friday 23 February 7pm against the Hurricanes at HBF Park.
The newly released 2024 Force playing jerseys, along with the Club’s 2024 merchandise range, are on sale now at the Club Store for $120 too, with Club Members entitled to 20% discounts on all merchandise.
